Senior executives from Alibaba Group and Airport Authority Hong Kong have expressed their commitment to jointly build a global smart logistics network to foster more inclusive trade.
A smart logistics hub will be built in Kwo Lo Wan at Hong Kong International Airport.
In June this year, Alibaba Group’s logistics arm Cainiao Network was awarded the right to develop and manage the hub, with the view of developing it into a world-class digital logistics centre in Asia, serving cross border e-commerce and strengthening Hong Kong’s international competitiveness.
The hub occupies a site of 5.3 hectares, with an estimated gross floor area of 380,000 square metres.
Scheduled to commence operations in 2023, the hub will be future-proofed, with high design specifications for large-scale, cutting-edge robotics and automation as well as temperature-controlled features.
The companies expressed their commitment to the venture when Airport Authority chairman, Jack So Chak-kwong, and Airport Authority CEO Fred Lam met with Alibaba Group executive chairman, Jack Ma and Alibaba Group president of global business, Angel Zhou in Hong Kong on 12 December.
Hong Kong International Airport has been the world’s busiest cargo hub for eight consecutive years, and the development of the hub will take advantages of opportunities from cross-border e-commerce as well as for temperature-controlled products such as pharmaceuticals.
